[OccupyCU] Fwd: [CentralILJwJ] Workers' Rights Board network updates

[s.hansen at comcast.net]

FYI 

----- Forwarded Message -----
From: "Ricky Baldwin" <rbaldwin at seiu73.org> 
To: CentralILJwJ at yahoogroups.com 
Sent: Wednesday, July 25, 2012 12:20:33 PM 
Subject: [CentralILJwJ] Workers' Rights Board network updates 

Here's what some other folks are doing with a Workers' Rights Board... 

Solidarity, 
Ricky 


1.       Kentucky Workers’ Rights Board 

In February, the Kentucky Workers’ Rights Board released its report “Wage Theft: It Happens Hear” based on their November hearing on the issues. You can read the report online here: http://www.kyjwj.org/Wage%20Theft%20Report.pdf 
The hearing and report served as a foundation for KY JwJ’s long-term work around wage theft, which will include addressing many facets of the issue, such as expanding Kentucky's theft of labor statute, enacting Wage Theft Ordinances across the State, streamlining the complaint process, creating employer accountability, reforming government action, and protecting workers from retaliation. 



2.       Central Indiana Workers’ Rights Board 

On Thursday,  May 17th Central Indiana Worker’s Rights Board held a hearing in response to worker complaints about Securatex, a security services company that holds contracts at Wishard Hospital, the City-County Council Building and many other public locations in Indianapolis. 
Watch a news clip here: http://www.wibc.com/news/Story.aspx?ID=1705996 
Read the report here: http://www.centralindianajwj.org/yahoo_site_admin/assets/docs/Security_WRB_report_final.15074238.pdf 


3.       DC Workers’ Rights Board 


On May 3rd the DC Workers’ Rights Board held a hearing on the struggles of female workers in the District. One panel featured the voices of women workers, including a Walmart associate, a restaurant worker, a bus driver, a police officer, and a working mother. A second panel looked at polices to support working women, such as paid sick says, affordable housing, and affordable child care. Read more at http://www.dcjwj.org/node/8 and watch for a report coming soon. 



4.       Western Massachusetts Workers’ Rights Board 

Western Massachusetts JwJ worked with the Northamton City Council to pass a “Resolution Regarding the Right to Organize”: http://www.northamptonma.gov/citycouncil/uploads/listWidget/11134/Resolution%20Right%20to%20Organize.pdf 
The Resolution, passed July 12th, calls upon employers to “respect that the question to unionize or not is for employees to decide” and agree to remain neutral, as well as to respect the rights of immigrant workers in particular. The resolution also charges the Western Massachusetts Workers’ Rights Board with providing the Northampton Human Rights Commission with a list of employers who respond affirmatively to the City Council’s requests, as well as reporting employers they find in violation of workers’ rights. Finally, it gives the Human Rights Commission jurisdiction to respond to reports of workers’ rights violations and intervene with employers. The resolution is based on a similar resolution passed in Springfield, MA in 2010 (http://wmjwj.org/springfield-union-rights-resolution). 


5.       National Workers’ Rights Board 

The National Workers’ Rights Board has been supporting guestworkers in Breaux Bridge, Louisiana who went on strike to expose forced labor condition at C.J.’s Seafood, which supplies shellfish for Walmart and Sam’s Club stores. The company has been subjecting 40 Mexican guestworkers on H-2B visas to forced labor, stolen wages, unfair labor practices and discrimination—from which Walmart has profited. The NWRB sent a letter to Walmart calling on them to suspend their contract with CJ’s, meet with striking workers, and cooperative with the National Guestworker Alliance in investigating conditions at other suppliers along the Gulf Coast. While Walmart launched their own internal investigation and eventually suspended the contract with CJ’s, they refused to meet with workers or to take actions to prevent similar abuses along their supply chain. Three National Workers’ Rights Board members – Terry O’Neill of the National Organization of Women, Barbara Ehrenreich, and Bill Fletcher Jr. – are representing the NWRB on a Commission formed to investigate conditions of guestworkers at other Walmart suppliers where there have been complaints. 





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